Market history · Alternatives ·
Harvard and Yale sell private equity stakes
In the first half of 2025 Harvard agreed to sell roughly $1 billion of private equity holdings and Yale was negotiating a sale of nearly $3 billion, at a discount of under 10%, according to Fortune. Yale said the sale followed a months-long review and that it remained committed to private equity.
The sales drew attention because the two endowments were among the pioneers of investing heavily in private markets. Jefferies data cited by Fortune showed secondary sales of private equity stakes rising 45% to $162 billion in the previous year, with sellers on average accepting an 11% discount to net asset value.
Selling in the secondary market is one of the few ways to turn a private fund stake into cash before the fund winds up. The price, set by buyers, can differ from the manager's own valuation.
The takeaway
Private fund valuations are estimates. The price someone will pay today in the secondary market is the real test of liquidity.
Sources
This is a retrospective about a past event, provided for general information. It is not investment advice, does not describe RockLake's positioning at the time, and past performance is not a guide to future performance. Read the risk warning.